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This study explored how developmentally appropriate practices influenced the affordances of a multitouch surface in an early childhood classroom. Children, ages 4 to 5 years old, were videotaped while engaged in a storymaking application on a multitouch table. As a result of the study, we found that some challenges with the functionality undermined children's autonomous control. The researchers observed numerous instances of issues with control of the medium, including height of the table, sensitivity to multiple types of touch, and limited instructions and prompts. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

This article describes a collaborative self-study of seven early career mathematics teacher educators. Our collective group sought to improve our practice in, and enhance transparency around, supporting prospective teachers as they engaged in equity-based mathematics pedagogies. The collaboration evolved into a critical friendship and provided a space to study, reflect and supportively challenge our practices. We found that self-study methodology matched our motivation to improve our practice as teacher educators, while recognizing the contexts of our other professional and institutional obligations and upholding our own values. We draw upon a traffic roundabout as a metaphor for our experience in self-study, noting the ways it provided professional learning and moved our work with prospective teachers forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Treating young adults (18–25 year olds) as a distinct group within the criminal justice system is receiving growing support. This article asks three specific questions. Should specialist young adult courts be introduced so that young age and developing maturity are considered with more consistency across court sentencing; should social background factors be taken into account when appraising culpability and have the 2019 'sentencing guidelines' that give judicial direction for sentence mitigation gone far enough? The article argues significant gains in sentencing policy have been made, but a specialist young adult court model would ensure a dedicated response to this age group and would foster a shared courts working culture that pursues the common goals of rehabilitation and social pedagogic interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This paper presents two collaborative programs at a small academic library that leverage the insights, engagement, and interests of our most important asset: our staff. Two new library committees, [...]

In response to the American Association for the Advancement of Science's Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education initiative, we infused authentic, plant-based research into majors' courses at a public liberal arts university. Faculty members designed a financially sustainable pedagogical approach, utilizing vertically integrated curricular modules based on undergraduate researchers' field and laboratory projects. Our goals were to 1) teach botanical concepts, from cells to ecosystems; 2) strengthen competencies in statistical analysis and scientific writing; 3) pique plant science interest; and 4) allow all undergraduates to contribute to genuine research. Our series of inquiry-centered exercises mitigated potential faculty barriers to adopting research-rich curricula, facilitating teaching/research balance by gathering publishable scholarly data during laboratory class periods. Student competencies were assessed with pre- and postcourse quizzes and rubric-graded papers, and attitudes were evaluated with pre- and postcourse surveys. Our revised curriculum increased students' knowledge and awareness of plant science topics, improved scientific writing, enhanced statistical knowledge, and boosted interest in conducting research. More than 300 classroom students have participated in our program, and data generated from these modules' assessment allowed faculty and students to present 28 contributed talks or posters and publish three papers in 4 yr. Future steps include analyzing the effects of repeated module exposure on student learning and creating a regional consortium to increase our project's pedagogical impact.

In this article, the authors describe a recent project undertaken at the University of South Florida's (USF) Preschool for Creative Learning. To align with the inquiry approach of their laboratory school, the environment at the Preschool is designed so that children can learn through exploration and individual initiative. The administration and faculty are committed to providing an inclusive, anti-biased, multicultural curriculum that meets the needs and interests of the children and families served. In this context, the power of high quality social studies curriculum is realized through integrated instruction that actively engages young children in purposeful and dynamic lessons. By engaging in learning firsthand (rather than being told when and how to learn), children develop personal meaning from their experiences and the courage to seek out new learning situations. Age-appropriate activities help them connect concepts with their everyday lives and extend the learning experience to other disciplines. The children are not routinely asked to gain knowledge secondhand, while listening to someone else telling about a distant place or time. Rather, children are using their hands to take things apart, fit things together, and make new things. They experience things directly and are challenged to make sense of their experience. The project described herein was undertaken in the classroom for four year olds that is connected to the exploration of world cultures and places near and far. The authors integrate social studies throughout instruction to engage children in learning through free play, storytelling, drama, and problem solving, and the interactive whiteboard is an important tool in the exploration process. However, the content and focus of their studies emanate from the children's own ideas, questions, and interests. They conclude that they found the interactive whiteboard to be a tool that aligns well with a classroom focused on process over product, in which the value of children's learning is interwoven into experiences that foster deep interaction with concepts and ideas. The technology expands the capacity of children to revise and transform through play-based experiences and investigations. This situated form of learning necessitates a focus in the classroom on digital literacy to hone the skill sets young children need to become active producers and participants in diverse digitally enhanced environments.